Kolkata, (Samajweekly) Different districts in West Bengal witnessed protest demonstrations throughout Tuesday over the recent developments at Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district, where local women have alleged sexual harassment at the hands of absconding Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan and his close associates.
BJP workers led by its state unit chief Sukanta Majumdar staged a protest in front of the office of the superintendent of police of Basirhat district, under whose jurisdiction Sandeshkhali falls.
Apprehending that he might be stopped before reaching Basirhat if he travels by road, Majumdar reached there by train and from the station, he along with his supporters moved towards the office of the SP on foot.
The police by then had already set up two sets of barricades to prevent the BJP workers from coming near the SP’s office. As the BJP supporters started moving forward, the police resorted to lathi charge and firing of teargas shells to disperse the crowd. The BJP supporters also retaliated by throwing stones and bricks at the police contingent.
Majumdar finally sat on the street and staged a sit-in demonstration alleging police atrocities.
CPI(M) workers also staged parallel protests in different districts, including in South 24 Parganas, Murshidabad, West Midnapore and West Burdwan. At several places, joint protests were held by the CPI(M) and Congress supporters. At some places, clashes were reported between the cops and the protesters.
Meanwhile, breaking her silence on the matter, actress-turned-Trinamool MP from Basrihat, Nusrat Jahan, issued a statement on Tuesday over the developments at Sandeshkhali, which has been on the boil since last Thursday.
“In such a situation, everyone should cooperate with the administration to restore normalcy. As an elected MP, I am also in touch with the administration on a regular basis. My task is to extinguish the fire and not to fuel it further. I condemn the attempts to politicise the entire issue. No one should instigate violence. Those who are attempting to instigate violence should be prevented,” she said in the statement.
